Quakes have a relapse in New York

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San Jose Earthquakes’ Jean Philippe Peguero, of Haiti, heads the ball in front of New York Red Bulls’ Kevin Goldthawite during the second half of an MLS soccer match at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, April 27, 2008. The Red Bills defeated the Earthquakes 2-0. (AP Photo/Rich Schultz)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Standing at his locker, Ryan Cochrane took responsibility for the San Jose Earthquakes’ 2-0 loss against the New York Red Bulls on Sunday at Giants Stadium.

His foul on Jozy Altidore inside the box led to Mike Magee’s game-winning penalty kick in the 79th minute.

But Cochrane wasn’t the only one to blame for the Quakes’ third defeat in four games.

San Jose had a lackluster performance Sunday that echoed its Major League Soccer debut this month against the Los Angeles Galaxy – also a 2-0 defeat. The team seemed to play for the draw at the Meadowlands, not the approach Cochrane said the Quakes should have.

Perhaps they were affected by Giants Stadium’s artificial turf, considered one of the worst surfaces in MLS. Whatever bothered them, the Quakes never threatened making only two shots on goal. Red Bulls goalkeeper Jon Conway stopped both easily.

Not even the debut of forward Jean Philippe Peguero, acquired last week from the Danish club Brondby, helped as New York successfully clogged the midfield.

The Quakes couldn’t get quality passes to speedy forwards Kei Kamara, Gavin Glinton or Peguero, who came on in the second half to play 23 minutes.

“I thought we were second to a lot of balls today,” Ronnie O’Brien said. “I don’t think we played well enough to win the game. We might have deserved a draw out of it, but they come in with a PK. We’ve got to find a way to play better.”

The defeat was more distressing for the Earthquakes considering New York was without its best player – striker Juan Pablo Angel who was sidelined with a nerve-related back injury.

Angel’s absence allowed the Quakes to focus on Altidore, and for the majority of the game they kept the young star in check.

But a midfield breakdown led to the Red Bulls’ John Wolyniec playing a ball over the top and finding Altidore. He raced toward the goal ahead of San Jose’s defenders when Cochrane tripped him in the penalty box. Referee Michael Kennedy awarded a penalty kick that Mike Magee blasted over keeper Joe Cannon’s right shoulder for a 1-0 lead.

“At that close range, you don’t want him to touch it by you and just have a shot because he’s deadly right there,” Cochrane said. “He takes a touch, I try and stick my leg in. He went down pretty fast.”

Altidore added a goal five minutes into stoppage time, when his shot off the post rebounded in.

“He played it well,” Nick Garcia said of Altidore. “I think we kind of caught ourselves out of position and maybe not being ready for the ball. Maybe next time, too, the penalty doesn’t get called if we’re at home.”

If not for Garcia, the New York might have made it a rout. He cleared Claudio Reyna’s open shot off the line late in the first half and then made a similarly spectacular save of Wolyniec, who had Cannon beat on a header in the 90th minute.

“I didn’t think we looked like we were going to win the game,” Earthquakes Coach Frank Yallop said. “But I didn’t think they really did either. You just hope to get through the game with maybe not playing great and getting the point.”